Gallery by Heather Belcher
Beckley – Brian Nabors has won sectional and regional championships as well as a state tournament game during his eight seasons as the head coach of the Beckley girls basketball program.
The one thing the program has never done during his time is host a sectional championship.
That streak appears to be at an end.
The Lady Flying Eagles jumped out to a 34-14 lead at the half and were never threatened afterwards, downing Oak Hill 55-30 in the Class AAAA Region 3, Section 2 opener Tuesday in Beckley.
With the win Beckley will host Princeton, which upset No. 2 Greenbrier East, on Friday.
While it’s the second time Nabors has secured the No. 1 seed in his section, the last time his team was set to host the championship game in 2021, Greenbrier East had to forfeit due to illness.
“Our ultimate goal is to win a state championship,” Nabors said. “That’s what it’s all about and what you work for. To host a sectional championship game, that’s all good. We’re just glad to be in this position. It’s a great accomplishment and it’s good for the team and the school. We play well at home and have a great fanbase so we feel like that’s an advantage to have our crowd here and be the sixth man instead of getting on the road and having to travel. We just appreciate the opportunity.”
With a matchup against upset-minded Princeton on the horizon, the hope is the Lady Flying Eagles get off to a faster start than they did Tuesday.
The first two minutes proved fruitless for both sides until Josie Cross put the hosts on the board with a free throw. From there the show belonged to Keanti Thompson. The electric senior guard, who earned her eligibility last month, reeled off 13 straight for Beckley, putting the Lady Flying Eagles up 14-2. Taysia Gray snapped the skid for Oak Hill with a layup but Cross fired back with one of her own for an answer. Thompson moved to the role of distributor afterwards, finding Lataja Creasey for a 3.
When the dust cleared Beckley led 19-9 after a quarter following a Cara Smith 3 for the Red Devils at the buzzer.
“I thought she picked up the pace and she’s getting in shape and her legs are getting up under her,” Nabors said of Thompson. “Her feet are settling in and she just needed to get in shape. She’s starting to be the player we know that she can be and we need her to continue to play well to make this run and win a state championship because that’s our goal.”
The hosts were true from behind the arc in the second quarter with Creasey, Maddy Belcher and Abby Dillon combining for a quartet of 3s. Dillon sealed the deal with five straight points to open the third and Beckley was never threatened afterwards.
For Nabors it was his first game back after submitting his resignation two weeks ago and rescinding it last week. It felt like business as usual along the Beckley bench.
“I think our team responded well,” Nabors said. “They welcomed me back with open arms and we got right back to business like nothing changed. Everything was the same.”
Up next is a Tiger team Beckley swept in the regular season with 49-45 win in Princeton on Jan. 17 and a 71-27 victory at Beckley on Jan. 31. The winner hosts one of the next week’s Region 3 co-finals while the other travels to the Section 1 winner – either South Charleston or George Washington.
“I just think Princeton is a really good team and a well-coached team,” Nabors said. “We just happened to play very well that night up here. It might’ve been some extra motivation because we didn’t play well at their place. We can’t take anything for granted. We know everybody is coming for our head and we realize that. We’ve just got to make sure we’re focused and take off the things we can take care of. We can take care of business. We control our own destiny.”
Email: tylerjackson@lootpress.com and follow on Twitter @tjack94
OH:9 5 8 8 – 30
B: 19 15 15 6 – 55
Oak Hill
Taysia Gray 9, Jordan Harris 2, Cara Smith 17, Grace Angelona 2
Beckley
Abby Dillon 9, Josie Cross 5, Lataja Creasey 9, Keanti Thompson 20, Leiloni Manns 2, Madison Belcher 6, Donya Burton 3, Mya Wooton 1
3-point goals – OH; 1 (Smith); B: 10 (Dillon 2, Creasey 3, Thompson 3, Belcher 2)
